History

Celebrating Manteno State Hospital during construction, circa 1928

In December of 1930 Manteno officially opened, its first one hundred patients transferring in from nearby Kankakee State Hospital. The facility quickly grew, and in 1936 an additional 200 acres were purchased to expand the campus.

The program was so large it was virtually self-sustaining: there was a farming community, police force, fire department, utilities services, administrative complex, restaurants and miles of paved roads.

Picture from Chicago Times photographer Mel Larson, February 19, 1945. Inscription on back reads: “Forgotten men of ‘Hell’s cottage’ live in a twisted world of their own. At Manteno madhouse heavy boot and clenched fist add torture of broken bones to miseries of broken minds.” (photo courtesy Phil Tkacz, asylumprojects.org)

The earliest years proved to be an operational nightmare; Manteno was funded and established in the midst of the Great Depression. Compounding to the hospital’s early woes were medical staffing shortages brought about by World War II. Qualified doctors and nurses across the United States were called up to assist with the war effort.

Medical staffing at Manteno eventually became such a concern, high school dropouts were allowed to be hired as nurses. At one point, out of 120 nurses on staff – only 16 had actual nurse training.

In 1934 the health budget was suddenly cut by 29%. Despite this, Manteno State Hospital watched its occupancy more than double over the next two years. In 1936 shock therapy was introduced, and a year later Manteno added a tuberculosis sanitarium.

The first disaster for Manteno was a typhoid fever epidemic, which lasted from July until December of 1939 and resulted in an estimated 60 deaths.

As the scope and funding of Manteno State Hospital grew, so did the number of patients. At its peak, Manteno was one of the largest facilities of its kind in the world: over 10,500 meals were served on a daily basis, the facility power plant generated over 2500 kilowatts of power, and up to 225 tons of coal were required to run all operations each day.

The laundry facility opened in 1966 and was one of the largest in the world, processing over 115 tons of laundry each week.

*

Controversy

Over the years the hospital endured its share of controversies. Stories of patients attacking nurses would surface and rumors of patient abuse seemed to persist. There were allegations of the U.S. military conducting secret medical testing at Manteno during World War II. Patients would unknowingly be injected with malaria in an attempt by the military to find a remedy for the illness.

In 1941 alone, 462 patients would die from the experimentation. Another 198 escaped from the facility.

Manteno State Hospital

There were allegations of sexual abuse, and decades later it was revealed that in the 1950s the hospital had been conducting experimental surgeries on patients without consent.

It was also during this time that lobotomies were a popular experimentation technique for treating mental illness, and Manteno State Hospital was no exception.

A former employee shared a story about a frustrated farmer who owned the corn field bordering the hospital.

He decided to sell his property, because every year during harvest season he would find bodies of deceased patients who had gotten lost in his corn fields.

Manteno State Hospital

*

Decline

The patient population at Manteno State Hospital would eventually peak at 8,195 in 1954. Around this time, the hospital was operating with about 450 attendants – only 21 of which were registered nurses. The late 50s ushered in a time of contraction for Manteno, and it would start to see a reduced role for the state of Illinois.

By the early 60s the farm operations were shut down, and for the next decade the patient population would continue to dwindle as Federal subsidizing dictated the state shift elderly patients toward nursing homes.

In 1975 Manteno State Hospital went through an organizational shift and was renamed Manteno Mental Health Center. Manteno would slowly continue to see a reduced role until finally operational cost became too much of a burden for the state.

By 1983 Governor Jim Thompson decided it was finally time to shut the hospital down. After 55 years of operation, Manteno Mental Health Center closed its doors in December of 1985.

Today

In the years since, several attempts have been made to re-appropriate the land. A golf course and a Veterans’ Administration home occupy part of the old Manteno land – and recently an industrial park was also developed.

Numerous housing developments and treatment programs have since also found a new home on the old Manteno campus. Very few of the original structures remain, however, and as the land continues to be further developed those structures that are left may not be around for much longer.

The writing is about Gennie Pilarski. This site has a story about her.

“Everyone has,” Gennie said. Her brother, for instance, was an enemy because he had threatened to hurt her. Her father was an enemy because he had beaten her up, slapped her and torn the clothes off her back. And her mother?

Gennie said she didn’t know if her mother was an enemy. When asked if anyone had ever tried to poison her, Gennie responded: “I have eaten things I don’t like, but I wouldn’t call that poisoning.”

The therapist asked Gennie what she would do if she were released from the “insane asylum,” as Gennie called it. Gennie said she would like to have a job, clothes, some books. She would buy powder and rouge, and have some teeth extracted.

When asked to explain the difference between a tree and bush, Gennie said: “A bush is a small plant and a tree is a large plant.”

When asked the difference between a lie and a mistake, she asserted, “A mistake is a casual error; a lie is a deliberate, conscious attempt to twist the truth for personal gain.”

What was the difference between laziness and idleness?

“I don’t know,” she said.

The therapist noted that Gennie had repeated a statement–the same statement–several times during the examination: “A person that is 25 years old should be away from family entanglements.”

In a paragraph marked “Sexual Trends,” the therapist noted that Gennie had said, “I don’t want a boyfriend.” He concluded that she was oriented as to time, place and person, and had good memory and retention. She was neat and clean in appearance, tidy in her personal habits, cooperative.

Estimating her intellectual capacity, he wrote: “Counting and calculation were all done rapidly and well. Patient has attended the University of Illinois for three years as a chemistry major.”

Several months later Gennie was subjected to hydrotherapy–repeatedly plunged in and out of ice water. Afterward, she asked: “Is life a farce?”

By VJ-Day in August 1945, Gennie had been given 40 insulin coma “treatments” and undergone 14 bouts of electroshock therapy, in addition to her hydrotherapy.

I used to work at one of the programs that was using part of the facility. They only use a few buildings, but as staff we we’re show around the tunnels and while working and many times at night you could hear strange things and the power would often shut off for no apparent reason. One of the reason they have such a high turn over rate. I left after a month. Most people working there believed strongly that the buildings and even the current residents are haunted. When I had been working there for only a week, my mother told me that my great-grandmother had been institutionalized there until her death and that they performed hydrotherapy and other forms of shock therapy on her.

What a fantastic collection of stories that lies behind these abandoned buildings.
The photos of these buildings are beautiful – and amazing, probably largely because one senses many stories hidden here …
And thanks for the “like” visiting my blog 🙂

My father worked in the power house at MMHC for 35 years. When it was his turn for custody, and he was forced to work, I used to stay the night there. Huge generators I would sleep on. Had massive deadbolts on the door and a chain, essentially locking us “in” to stay safe from some of the patients who would escape and try to break in. This place was enormous and really cool for a kid who loved to wander around. The power house was torn down quite awhile ago because it was riddled with asbestos, which sadly, probably killed my father. Awesome memories,but a very,very, creepy place.

awesome place, been there a few times myself to do some photography. Some of the buildings have been torn down, some have been remodeled and are being used by companies as depots i presume, while others have degraded naturally and can’t really be accessed (the basements at least, which is where all the cool stuff is in my opinion) things like old equipment and clear signs of satanic or some kind of witch craft rituals, plenty of graffiti, and a very VERY unsettling feeling especially if you read up on all the cruel ‘treatments’ the doctors practiced on the patients. also the chimney stack from the crematorium where they burned plenty of bodies. i don’t suggest going there however since there is a regular security force and residential areas near by with folks that are very aware and sick of people trespassing just for kicks.

Unfortunately there’s not much left abandoned of the original campus. Much of the hospital has since been renovated/rebuilt and most of the rest of the land has already been re-appropriated.

That said, there are still some original structures standing:
* at the corner of Olive & Mulberry
* along Olive between W. Sycamore & Diversitech Drive (& across the street from these buildings are other various abandoned structures)
* on Diversitech between Evergreen & Chestnut
* the original main building on Diversitech & Bramble (still in use though, not abandoned)
* at Bramble & Sycamore

And there are more. But keep in mind many of those old buildings are still in use and not vacant.

Cheryl, I do not believe this is a situation where there is someone to ask for permission for access. You would likely be trespassing and should be sensitive to that fact. If you do go, just be safe and smart. Take only photos, leave only footprints. And travel with a friend – safety in numbers. Good luck!

I would love to know if anyone has any info on my grandmother (Doris Totten) who was a patient at Manteno from April 1931 to her death in 1971….she is buried there on the grounds….i wonder where I can get any old records or info on her while she was a patient there for so many years…it was a family secret for many many years…and my mom and her 2 siblings were raised by a great aunt who told them their mother was dead. My mother did find out her mother was living when she was older but didn’t go to visit, (out of fear) until year’s later….what was wrong with her…they, the family said she had a nervous breakdown because of her mother’s death, but it doesn’t add up and i’m wondering why nobody went and got her what happened to her husband, Paul Totten..he seemed to disappear off the face of the earth…..I just want to know the real truth behind it all…Please help if anyone know’s anything..

To MS Paulo , I am also trying to find out information about my mother who was a patient there during those years , she also passed away at the hospital , and her body was shipped back to my home state for burial . If someone knows how to get access to her hospital records would you please let me know , it is so sad knowing she was there and knowing nothing as I only visited her there one time before she passed away . Thanks So Much MEC

My great uncle was a “guest” here at one time. He had a brain tumor that caused him to be “violently insane” and instead of actually treating his cancer, they locked him in there as was the custom of the time.

I live here in diversitech, I love it out here, its peaceful. There are still buildings left especially the administration building which is now the Homestar bank office, but that building is a landmark so I don’t c them tearing that one down, but there are some that have been turned into company buildings, and some are used now for the Manteno veterans home, and some are now part of Indian oaks academy, and then there are some that are still standing that r really decrepit, like the most decrepit one is the Morgan building in the most southwest corner, but there’s just something interesting about that building that I think they should just leave it alone till it collapse on its self, ( actually that building made a great backdrop for my senior pictures). Oh and the Morgan building is said to have been the home where gennie lived. anyways there are a lot of photo opportunities around this place, I’ve done it. And people wonder if this place is haunted, I’ve never seen anything or heard anything, and my house sits along the block that had the building that housed that morgue. but the other buildings that still stand might have some ghost stories from people. either way I love this place, and that it has interesting/ disturbing history. I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else.

Unfortunately the old records from Manteno are next to impossible to find or obtain. Several former employees told me they threw out many of the records to save time and money.

If there are no surviving immediate family members, a court order from an Illinois circuit court will be necessary. If there are, the state has even more confusing laws to allow them. Immediate family members can request records from the state per Public Act 097-0623.

If you are planning to go there, please don’t be seen around the buildings that are still standing. You can get in major trouble with the police in the area. I am from the surrounding area, and have friends who grew up in Manteno. Thrill-seeking kids back in the day were caught in the buildings, and now not even the most honest spectator is viewed kindly by the authorities.
And the story goes that it is insanely haunted. I’ve never been there myself, for fear of getting caught, but the stories I hear from the people I know, it’s quite a place. I actually can’t believe they’re rebuilding over the ground.

My friend’s and I use to venture out there on the weekends in the summer of ’99 and yes almost got arrested by the cops because of it. We heard the rumors too of the place being haunted and have lots of pictures with orbs in it. One time though while walking through we started to smell like there was a fire burning yet we could not see any flames or smoke. Kind of creepy but a great experience.

in the 80s and 90s it was all pretty well abandoned. Teenagers would break in and go thru the rooms and tunnels. There were underground tunnels connecting each building and ruemored to go all the way to town.

I was one of those teenagers. We went all over the place within the grounds, in the basement and the upper levels as well. And yes there were tunnels downstairs and you could get lost very easily if you were not careful. I heard those rumors too, that the tunnels would connect to the town but never ventured that far to find out.

For starters, the tunnels did not connect to the town of Manteno. In fact, some claim they went all the way to Chicago, they didn’t. I remember going through the buildings countless times starting in the early 1990’s. I dispute talk of the building that was full of children’s toys. By the late1960s, Manteno did not house juveniles. At that time Manteno was only for people over 18. Lincoln & Dixon State Schools were able to handle most of the children by the 1970s. There is a lot of BS out there about Manteno, including those that say Charles Manson spent time there, he didn’t.

I was one of those teens as well, as was my father and his friends before us. I don’t remember toys, but I do remember shoes. Old fashioned shoes from the 30’s-40’s. Hundreds of them everywhere. Also adult sized “cribs” with handcuffs still attached and old prescription pill bottles in the pharmacy area. My friend claimed to have seen bones/remains still in the furnace but i can’t confirm that. While sitting in the inner courtyard at night we could all see flashes or orbs of light in the various windows. While I don’t doubt there are spirits lingering in the tunnels, most of the sounds people hear down there are probably bums; we ran into evidence of people living down there (modern food cans, toilet paper, etc.) Over all, the vibe was heavy, depressing, and downright terrifying at some points.

My parents live real close to the property that was the Manteno Mental Health Facility. We saw buildings come down and single family homes go up on the property. If I remember correctly there was/still is a youth program that operates out of a few of the buildings. It has been some time since I traveled through the property so I am not sure if they still are there. My sister even worked for a short time at the Veteran’s Home out there. It was truly sad to see such beautiful, in architecture, buildings fall into decay.

In 1995, I worked for a company called M&D Ballons which was run out of one of the buildings. Across from it was the one where they kept the children. Mind you, we later found out the building we were working in had served as the morgue. The tunnels beneath were terrifying! One day on lunch a few of us went into the facing building. It was late fall so it was chilly, but a warm downdraft swept past us after opening the door. There were toys everywhere but NOT A SPECK OF DUST was on them! And then we heard the voices.

I live about 25 min away from this place and a few of my friends and myself went there because everyone says its haunted and the walls we not like that at all and this was maybe 13 years ago. A lot of teenagers go there because like I said alot of people say its haunted so I’m positive the artwork on the walls is a patient from the hospital the ink wouldn’t be that fresh even from 40 yrs ago people are so gullible lol

The words painted on the walls was of a patients file. Seone did a project about Manteno and they went in and painted the words of the girls file on the walls to tell her story. It was really remarkable to see first hand and to read about the woman who use to be a patient there. The last time I was there some idiots sprayed another one of the rooms with spray paint. They were destroying the property. They sprayed the tubs gold and sprayed the words BLING BLING on the wall and door of one of the rooms. Such a shame. Without the graffiti and garbage from teen parties you can see the beauty and destruction of the place as it was naturally falling apart. It was quite dark.. beautiful and historic. Seeing people destroy it was heartbreaking.

My friend April is a very talented photographer and back in my modeling days she took some amazing photos of me inside the Manteno Mental Hospital. One where I was a ghostly lost soul and another where I was a nurse. One of the photos when I was ghostly lost soul you can see the word SANE in the branches and leaves below the window I am looking out of. Nothing photo shopped. It just appeared. The place was truly remarkable to be inside. I am glad I had a chance to experience it before it was torn up. Check out my friends photos at http://www.aprillovephotography.com/#adventures-with-interesting-people

It varies from one municipality to the next and was usually driven by what the budget allowed, but when state hospitals were closed residents were usually disbursed to other state hospitals or group homes.

I went here a few weeks ago with some friends I ended up blacking out looking into one of the buildings in the woods. I finally came to when one of my friends started screaming at me to snap out of whatever trance or whatever you wanna call it I was in. I had nightmares after that of being held down in a chair by someone dressed in white and a man in a brown suit emptying two mags into me with a old looking gun. I doubt anyone is gonna believe this but lets just say Im not going back to this place. I also started puking when I was then and felt paranoid the whole time.

The room where the bathtubs and walls are covered in writing was vandalized by Kristyn Vinikour in the name of a “photography project.” I have screenshots of her admitting to the vandalizing on her Facebook page and in a private message with me. I really wish she could/would be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law for her callous disregard of property rights for personal gain. Besides that eyesore, it’s a very interesting place and I’m glad some of it has managed to be redeveloped into usable space.

I live like 5 minutes away from this and somtimes we go in there but not only is there thee hospital theres also the doctors office of the doctor who went mad and theres a secerte tunnel under the facility.

I am looking for information about my mother who was there for approximately 5 years and died there. Her name was Mary Lucille Goff(Smith) I also need to know where I can get her death records and hospital records ? Manteno State Hospital, Manteno, Ill

While working at Elgin State Hospital in 1963, myself and a coworker Malcom Winkler were sent to Manteno for 2 weeks training. Three things remain in memory from that time ; 1) We had to serve one day as an aide on a ward assigned to us. I had the misfortune to get a geriatric ward. It seemed to be a never ending stream of rolling patient’s beds to the washroom. There they were stripped of the gowns they had messed in, moved naked to the slab to be rinsed off, dried , dressed in a clean gown, moved back to their remade bed, and trundled back to their spot. And then go on to the next one. It seems that there might have been around 50 on the ward, all bedridden. #2) One evening 4 of us decided to call in a food order in town. We all piled into Emile Jordan’s, (who happened to be a black gentleman), car and rode into town. When we got there Emile said that it probably would not be a good idea for him to go inside the cafe. So Malcom said he would just go in and get it to go. I guess someone thought we looked suspicious, a black guy along with a young white girl and guy. A police car pulls up and orders everyone out at gunpoint. About that time Malcom came out. As he had been a campus cop at SIU while attending there, if finally convinced the cop we were not a threat and he let us go. But, not before making Emile get all the empty booze bottles, that had somehow accumulated in his car, to the trash can across the street. It took several trips. Before we left, Emile thanked the officer, telling him that he had been meaning to get those bottles out for a while. Just a reflection of the times. #3) Sitting in the lounge watching the news as the Cuban missile crisis unfolded. Kinda scary. Especially being away from family.

My mother had been put there after leaving me for dead in a dresser drawer in 1955. Her name was Mary Mulvihill Norton. They did a lobotomy on her and she told me during this they found she had brIN CANCER. SHE SPENT SEVERAL YEARS THERE TILL AROUND 1960. Where can I seek her records? Our family has now been diagnosed with Cowdens syndrome. Which can cause these maladies. We were all adopted out , 6 of us and I have just in the last numerous years found other siblings who are also prone to psychopathic family members. Yet we didn’t grow up knowing each other. Again, is there a way to seek her records? Jazzdame@gmail.com

Ann – The Illinois Dept. of Health would have taken management all records from closed hospitals. I’d reach out to them (contact page here: http://www.dph.illinois.gov/contact-us) to ask about your mother. Good luck!